Beryl made landfall on the Texas coast early Monday morning as a Category 1 storm, unleashing a barrage of severe weather as it moved inland before weakening to a tropical storm and causing more widespread damage.
By morning, much of East Texas was inundated with a “life-threatening storm surge,” heavy rain and powerful winds of up to 84 mph in the Houston area. The National Hurricane Center said. The dangerous conditions prompted rescue efforts, grounded hundreds of flights, left more than 2 million people without power and caused at least two deaths.
The hurricane center said Beryl had sustained winds of 80 mph when it made landfall around 4 a.m. near Matagorta, a coastal community between Corpus Christi and Galveston. After more than five hours, the storm weakened to a tropical storm with sustained winds of 70 mph, uprooting trees and downing power poles.
A man was killed when a tree fell on his home in suburban Harris County, northeast of Houston. According to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, calling the incident “tragic!” who said in X. A 74-year-old woman died after a tree fell on her home in northern Harris County. Gonzalez said on social media.
Last week, Beryl carved a path of destruction across the Caribbean – killing at least 11 people and destroying or severely damaging infrastructure on several islands. Beryl, at one point the previous Category 5 hurricane on record, last made landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula on Friday morning. The storm then weakened to a tropical storm and then re-strengthened to a hurricane before making landfall in Texas.
developments:
∎ Hurricane Beryl’s highest sustained winds on record as it moved inland into Texas on Monday hit Brazoria County, northwest of Houston, at 97 mph. At the University of Houston in Harris County, winds gusted to 89 mph. According to the National Weather Service.
∎ The storm prompted closures or shipping restrictions at several ports in cities from Houston to Corpus Christi. The ports of Corpus Christi, Houston, Galveston, Freeport and Texas City were closed Sunday after US Coast Guard captains issued a “Zulu” condition.
∎ Across East Texas, heavy rains and subsequent flooding prompted water rescues as people were trapped in their homes and vehicles.
Cyclone Beryl ‘is rough’
Donna Radin said she was startled awake by the “very loud howling” of the wind that hit her home early Monday morning as the rain fell in sheets.
The 58-year-old travel agent lives in Deer Park, a small town east of Houston. Around 5 a.m., as conditions escalated, she heard a generator blowing down the block, and the power to her home soon went out.
Huddled inside with her daughter, two granddaughters and five dogs, Radin said she avoided the windows but could see “a lot” of trees down and the remains of a fence ripped from the ground and thrown several feet away.
“This is the most aggressive cat I’ve ever met,” said Radin, who has lived on the Texas Gulf Coast all her life.
People were impressed by the strength of Hurricane Beryl
Hal Needham, an avid weather scientist, is widely known to other locals in Galveston, Texas.Hurricane Hall“, woke up just after 4 a.m. Monday to monitor the storm and livestream updates.
“We’ve had some major landslides today with widespread power outages,” he said. “I think the storm was much stronger than a lot of people expected.”
Needham also expressed concern that residents will be vulnerable to a heat wave later this week due to continued power outages. “It’s the hottest time of the year,” he said. “If people still don’t have power, there may be some problems with heat exhaustion, heat-related illnesses, especially for older people with health conditions.”
Although people in the area are hurricane savvy, the storm hit earlier than most, catching them off guard, Needham said. “Only 3% of major hurricanes occur in June or July,” he said. “Typically, Texas doesn’t get hurricane landfalls in July and June.”
“I think people were surprised by how hard and how quickly it hit,” he added.
– Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Beryl’s Path
According to the National Hurricane Center’s latest advisory, Hurricane Beryl was about 20 miles west-northwest of Houston.
The storm was moving north at 13 mph, with sustained winds of 80 mph to 70 mph as the storm made landfall. Hurricane-force winds extend 45 miles outward from Beryl’s center, and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward 115 miles, the hurricane center said.
Further:Hurricane Beryl tracker: Storm makes landfall in Texas, spaghetti samples, see track
Cyclone Beryl is expected to weaken and move further inland, becoming first a tropical storm and then a tropical depression. Beryl is expected to continue north through the Mississippi Valley and then the Ohio Valley, where it is expected to dissipate on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Beryl cancels 1,000 flights at Houston
At George Bush Intercontinental Airport, nearly 1,000 inbound and outbound flights were canceled. According to FightAware. A small airport in Houston, William B. FlightAware reported more than 225 cancellations at Hobby Airport.
Houston is a major hub for United Airlines, which has suffered the worst operational impacts from the storm so far. So far Monday, 14% of United’s flights, about 400 departures, have been canceled.
Beryl knocks out power to more than 2 million people in Texas
More than 2.1 million customers in East Texas are without power. According to energy company Centerpoint Energy. It’s unclear how many of those customers were in Houston.
On its website, CenterPoint Energy said 4,810 outages affected service.
According to PowerOutage.us, an outage tracker, more than 2.5 million homes and businesses were without power across Texas.
Texas power outage map
Hurricane Beryl brings flooding, prompts water rescues
Across East Texas, officials in several counties said first responders were frantically rescuing people trapped in their cars and homes amid Hurricane Beryl’s deluge.
Ed Gonzalez, Harris County SheriffSurrounding Houston, drivers were asked to “please stay off the roads” as heavy rain drenched the big Texas city and surrounding areas.
The police department in Rosenberg, a city southwest of Houston, said it was conducting water rescue operations and warned residents of falling trees and continued flooding.
“Street flooding, downed trees, power outages and water backups. All happening in Rosenberg right now. Please stay off the roads. Even a downed tree,” The Rosenberg Police Department said in X.
In Fort Bend County, southwest of Houston, officials a Report on X He asked residents to “please stay at home until the storm passes.” “There are trees and debris all over the roads, many roads are flooded and most of the signals are out,” the district’s statement said. It added that deputies were responding to “trapped/flooded motorists.”
Texas Governor Says Hurricane Beryl ‘Will Be Deadly Storm’
The National Hurricane Center issued hurricane warnings for much of the Texas coast on Sunday, warning that Beryl could bring damaging hurricane-force winds and 5 to 10 inches of rain. Up to 15 inches of rain is expected along the central and upper Texas Gulf Coast and parts of East Texas.
Water levels began to rise in coastal areas on Sunday and several local authorities advised residents to evacuate ahead of the landslide. Officials also told residents to prepare for the effects of Beryl, as the storm is forecast to bring heavy rains, flash floods and inland tornadoes.
Acting Texas Gov. Dan Patrick said Beryl would be “a deadly storm for people in its direct path” and issued a disaster declaration for 120 counties.
‘We need help’:Honeymoon is now a ‘prison nightmare’ after Cyclone Beryl ravages couple in Jamaica
Will Hurricane Beryl Hit Houston?
Beryl threatens Texas’ largest city and the nation’s fourth largest.
The greater Houston area — particularly the western part of the metro area — “will see significant effects in the form of strong, gusty winds in addition to heavy rain,” said meteorologist Eric Berger. SpaceCityWeather blog.
The weather service warned that rainfall levels could reach 15 inches in some areas, which could lead to flash flooding.
The city has already faced severe storms in recent months that have brought down trees and cut power to hundreds of thousands of homes in the area and surrounding areas.
It’s hurricane season.See which storms have passed near your neighborhood
Hurricane Beryl set a record for what was scheduled to be a busy hurricane season
On July 1, Beryl made landfall on Grenada’s Cariago Island as a Category 4 hurricane and tore through the southern Caribbean, flattening hundreds of buildings.
Later that night, Beryl registered as a Category 5 hurricane. Driven by higher ocean temperatures, the rapid strengthening of beryl has stunned experts. Beryl was the first Category 4 hurricane on record and the first major hurricane east of the Lesser Antilles in June.
Federal forecasters predict a hurricane season unlike any other, with 25 named storms possible. This is the most stormy season ever predicted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Contributed by: George L. Ortiz and Tina Voyles Bulwer, USA TODAY; Reuters
